Buying erotic art: questions and answers

Before you buy

What am I actually buying?

An original oil painting. Painted by hand on stretched canvas, signed, and made exactly once. There is no second version and there never will be. Every painting ships with a certificate of authenticity.

Who are the women in these paintings?

Women who are looked at for three seconds at a time, thousands of times a day. I find them online, I scroll past nearly all of them, I save the pictures that stop me, and months later I paint one. That photograph got three seconds; the canvas takes weeks and then hangs on a wall for years. Every painting carries her first name, and the source photograph is credited underneath.

Is this erotic art, or something else?

It is figurative oil painting, and the subject is a woman who is looked at for three seconds at a time. Whether that reads as erotic is up to the person looking. I paint from photographs that stopped me, not from a category.

Where should I hang a nude painting?

Anywhere you actually spend time. The bedroom is the obvious answer and often the wrong one, because it is the room you see least. Work like this holds up in a living room or a study, where you pass it every day. Keep it out of direct sunlight, whichever room you choose.

Does the work hold its value?

Every painting is one of a kind, signed, and comes with a certificate. Print editions are closed once they sell out and are never reprinted. What that is worth later is not something I can promise, and you should be wary of any artist who does.

Original paintings

These answers are about the unique works: the original paintings, oil on stretched canvas, one of each.

How long does one painting take?

Days at a time, spread over several weeks. There is no schedule. I work on a canvas when I want to, and it stops when I am finished with it rather than when it is finished.

Is the painting framed?

No. The works are on stretched canvas, unframed and ready to hang as they are. If you want it framed, any decent framer can do it and I am happy to advise.

Do you take commissions?

A few each year. No deadlines, I may say no, and I decide how it gets painted. If that suits you, use the contact page.

How do I look after an oil painting?

Keep it out of direct sunlight and away from radiators. Dust it with a dry soft cloth and nothing else. No water, no cleaning products.

Signed prints

These answers are about the signed prints, the €35 end of the studio.

What is a signed print?

A high quality print of an original, in an edition of no more than fifty, signed by hand on the back. A print does not come with a certificate; that goes with an original painting. The painting itself stays one of a kind. These exist so the image can hang somewhere the original never will.

Will editions ever be reprinted?

No. Each edition is printed once and then closed.

Ordering, shipping and returns

These answers apply to both: a canvas and a print travel differently, and each answer says which is which.

Where do you ship, and what does it cost?

Worldwide, insured, from the Netherlands. Shipping is calculated at checkout.

How is the work packed, and what does the box look like?

It ships in a plain cardboard box with a sticker carrying my name, Paintings by Willem van der Krieken. Nothing on the outside shows which work is inside; the customs description reads "painting". Paintings travel flat and stretched, ready to hang. Prints travel rolled in a tube.

How do I return something?

Within 14 days of receipt, at your own expense and risk, in the original packaging. Those days are there to experience the work — take it out, stand it against the wall, live with it. They are not there to install it. You can still send back a work you have hung, but a nail, an adhesive strip or tape on the back leaves a trace, and that loss in value is deducted from the refund — on a one-off painting it can be most of the price. Once it arrives back I assess it and refund what you paid, including the standard delivery cost — the return shipping is the part you cover.